The
first degree, or that of the Entered Apprentice, is intended in its
symbolic signification to furnish a representation of youth just
entering on the struggles, the trials, and duties of an earthly and
responsible existence. On his first admission into the Lodge, the
candidate is reminded of the weak and helpless state of man on his
entrance into the world—unprepared for the exigencies of the
present, ignorant of the vicissitudes of the future, and dependent
for his safety and very existence on that God in whom alone, in all
trials and difficulties, is there any sure and abiding trust.
And
as the youth is prepared by a useful and virtuous education for his
journey through life, so the Apprentice obtains in his degree those
first instructions whereon to erect his future moral and Masonic
edifice. He now receives the elementary details of that universal
language in which hereafter he is to converse with bis brethren of
all nations, so as to understand and be understood by Masons of every
tongue and dialect under the sun. He is directed to take, as a staff
and scrip for his journey, a knowledge of all the virtues that expand
the heart and dignify the soul. Secrecy, obedience, humility, trust
in God, purity of conscience, economy of time, are all inculcated by
symbolic ceremonies too impressive in their character ever to be
forgotten. And, lastly, as charity forms the chief corner-stone of
all the Masonic virtues, the beauty and holiness of this attribute
are depicted in emblematic modes which no spoken language could
equal. The degree of the Apprentice is, in short, one of probation
and preparation for a more advanced position, and more exalted
privileges and duties.
LECTURE.
The
first lecture of Freemasonry, or that appropriated to the degree of
an Entered Apprentice, is divided into three sections. In this
lecture virtue is painted in the most beautiful colors, and the
duties of morality are strictly enforced. In it we are taught such
useful lessons as prepare the mind for a regular advancement in the
principles of knowledge and philosophy; and these are imprinted on
the memory by lively and sensible images, to influence our conduct in
the proper discharge of the duties of social life.
Every
candidate, before his reception, is required to make the following
declarations to the Senior Deacon, in the presence of the Stewards,
in a room adjacent to the Lodge.
Do
you seriously declare, upon your honor, that, unbiased by the
improper solicitation of friends, and uninfluenced by mercenary
motives, you freely and voluntarily offer yourself a candidate for
the mysteries of Masonry?
I
do.
Do
you sincerely declare, upon your honor, that you are prompted to
solicit the privileges of Masonry by a favorable opinion conceived of
the Institution, and a desire of knowledge?
I
do.
Do
you seriously declare, upon your. honor, that you will cheerfully
conform to all the ancient usages and established customs of the
fraternity?
I
do.
FIRST SECTION.
The
first section of the Entered Apprentice's Lecture principally
consists of a recapitulation of the ceremonies of initiation. But,
on this account, a knowledge of it is highly necessary to every
Mason, that he may be the better enabled to assist in the correct
performance of the ritual of the degree. It is, however introduced
by some general heads, which qualify us to examine the rights of
others to our privileges, while they prove our claims to the
character we profess.
It
is, of course, impossible, in a monitorial work, to give a full
explanation of the various symbols and ceremonies which are used in
the inculcation of moral and religious truths; but an allusion, in
even general terms, to the most important ones, in the order in which
they occur, will be sufficient to lead the contemplative Mason to a
further examination of their import.
THE SHOCK OF ENTRANCE.
In
the symbolic science of Masonry, the Lodge is often represented as a
symbol of life. In this case, Lodge labor becomes the symbol of the
labor of life, its duties, trials, and temptations, and the Mason is
the type of the laborer and actor in that life. The Lodge is, then,
at the time of the reception of an Entered Apprentice, a symbol of
the world, and the initiation is a type of the new life upon which
the candidate is about to enter. There he stands without our
portals, on the threshold of this new Masonic life, in darkness,
helplessness, and ignorance. Having been wandering amid the errors
and covered over with the pollutions of the outer and profane world,
he comes inquiringly to our doors, seeking the new birth, and asking
a withdrawal of the vail which conceals divine truth from his
uninitiated sight. And here, as with Moses at the burning bush, the
solemn admonition is given, “Put off thy shoes from off thy
feet, for the place whereon thou standest is holy ground;” and
ceremonial preparations surround him, all of a significant character,
to indicate to him that some great change is about to take place in
his moral and intellectual
condition. He is already beginning to discover that the design of
Masonry is to introduce him to new views of life and its duties. He
is, indeed, to commence with new lessons in a new school. There is
to be, not simply a change for the future, but also an extinction of
the past; for initiation is, as it were, a death to the world and a
resurrection to a new life. And hence it was that among the old
Greeks the same word signified both to
die and to be initiated. But
death, to him who believes in immortality, is but a new birth. Now,
this new birth should be accompanied with some ceremony to indicate
symbolically, and to impress upon the mind, this disruption of old
ties and formation of new ones. Hence the impression of this idea is
made by the symbolism of the shock at the entrance. The
world is left behind—the chains of error and ignorance which
had previously restrained the candidate in moral and intellectual
captivity are to be broken—the portal of the Temple has been
thrown widely open, and Masonry stands before the neophyte in all the
glory of its form and beauty, to be fully revealed to him, however,
only when the new birth has been completely accomplished. Shall this
momentous occasion be passed unnoticed? Shall this great event—the
first in the Masonic life of the aspirant—have no visible or
audible record? Shall the entrance, for the first time, into the
Lodge—the birth, as it has justly been called, into Masonry—be
symbolized by no outward sign? Shall the symbolism of our science,
ever ready at all other times, with its beautiful teachings, here
only be dumb and senseless? Or, rather, shall not all the Sons of
Light who witness the impressive scene feel like the children of
Korah, who, when released from the captivity of Babylon, and once
more returning to the Temple, exclaimed, in the heart-burst of their
grateful joy, “O, clap your hands all ye people; shout unto God
with the voice of triumph.”
The
Shock of Entrance is, then, the symbol of the disruption of the
candidate from the ties of the world, and his introduction into the
life of Masonry. It is the symbol of the agonies of the first
death and of the throes of the new birth.
PRAYER AT THE INITIATION OF A CANDIDATE.
As
Masons, we are taught never to commence any great or important
undertaking, without first invoking the blessing of Deity. At the
initiation of a candidate it is, therefore, usual to make use of the
following:
“Vouchsafe
thine aid, Almighty Father of the Universe, to this our present
convention, and grant that this candidate for Masonry may dedicate
and devote his life to thy service, and become a true and faithful
brother among us. Endue him with a competency of thy divine wisdom,
that by the secrets of our art he may be better enabled to display
the beauties of godliness to the honor of thy holy name. So mote
it be. Amen.
[This
prayer is found in Preston, upon whose authority I have restored the
word “godliness” instead of “virtuousness”
used by Webb, or “holiness” adopted by Cross. The
prayer, but in a very different form, is, however much older than
Preston, who borrowed, abridged, and altered the much longer formula
which had been used previous to his day. It is said that the prayer
at initiation was a ceremony in use among the “Ancient”
or “York Masons,” but omitted by the “Moderns.”]
THE RITE OF CIRCUMAMBULATION.
The
rite of Circumambulation, derived from the Latin verb
"circumambulare," to walk around anything, is the
name given to that observance in all the religious ceremonies of
antiquity, which consisted in a procession around an altar or some
other sacred object.
Thus,
in Greece, the priests and the people, when engaged in their
sacrificial rites, always walked three times around the altar while
singing a sacred hymn. Macrobius tells us that this ceremony had a
reference to the motion of the heavenly bodies, which, according to
the ancient poets and philosophers, produced a harmonious sound,
inaudible to mortal ears, which was called “the music of the
spheres.” Hence, in making this procession around the altar,
great care was taken to move in imitation of the apparent course of
the sun. For this purpose, they commenced at the east, and
proceeding by the way of the south to the west, and thence by the
north, they arrived at the east again. By this method, it will be
perceived that the right side was always nearest to the altar.
Much
stress was laid by the ancients on the necessity of keeping the altar
on the right hand of the persons moving around, because it was in
this way only that the apparent motion of the sun from east to west
could be imitated. Thus Plautius, the Roman poet, makes one of his
characters say, “If you would do reverence to the gods, you
must turn to the right hand;” and Genovius, in commenting on
this passage, says that the ancients, “in worshiping and
praying to the gods, were accustomed to turn to the right hand.”
In one of the hymns of Callimachus, supposed to have been chanted by
the priests of Apollo, it is said, “We imitate the example of
the sun, and follow his benevolent course.” Virgil describes
Corynaeus as purifying his companions at the funeral of Misenus by
passing three times around them, and at the same time aspersing them
with the lustral water, which action he could not have conveniently
performed, unless he had moved with his right hand toward them, thus
making his circuit from east to west by the south.
In
fact, the ceremony of circumambulation was, among the Romans, so
intimately connected with every religious rite of expiation or
purification, that the same word, “lustrare,” came
at length to signify both to purify, which was its original
meaning, and also to walk around anything.
Among
the Hindoos, the rite of circumambulation was always practiced as a
religious ceremony, and a Brahmin, on rising from his bed in the
morning, having first adored the sun, while directing his face to the
east, then proceeds by the way of the south to the west, exclaiming
at the same time, “I follow the course of the sun.”
The
Druids preserved this rite of circumambulation in their mystical
dance around the cairn or altar of sacred stones. On these
occasions, the priest always made three circuits, from east to west,
around the altar, having it on his right hand, and accompanied by all
the worshipers. And this sacred journey was called, in the Celtic
language, Deiseal, from two words, signifying the right
hand and the sun, in allusion to the mystical object of
the ceremony and the peculiar manner in which it was performed.
Hence
we find, in the universal prevalence of this ceremony and in the
invariable mode of passing from the east to the west by the way of
the south, with, consequently, the right hand on side to the altar, a
pregnant evidence of the common source of all these rites from some
primitive origin, to which Freemasonry is also indebted for its
existence. The circumambulation among the Pagan nations was referred
to the great doctrine of Sabaism, or sun-worship. Freemasonry alone
has preserved the primitive meaning, which was a symbolic allusion to
the sun as the source of physical light, and the most wonderful work
of the Grand Architect of the Universe. The reason assigned for the
ceremony in the modern lectures of Webb and Cross is absolutely
beneath criticism. The Lodge represents the world; the three
principal officers represent the sun in his three principal
positions—at rising, at meridian, and at setting. The
circumambulation, therefore, alludes to the apparent course of the
solar orb, through these points, around the world. This is with us
its astronomical symbolism. But its intellectual symbolism is, that
the circumambulation and the obstructions at various points refer to
the labors and difficulties of the student in his progress from
intellectual darkness or ignorance to intellectual light or TRUTH.
The
following passage of Scripture is used during the ceremony:
“Behold,
how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in
unity!
“It
is like the precious ointment upon the head, that ran down upon the
beard, even Aaron's beard; that went down to the skirts of his
garments;
“As
the dew of Hermon, and as the dew that descended upon the
mountains of Zion: for there the Lord commanded the blessing, even
life for evermore.” — Psalms 133:1-3.
The
great teaching of this Psalm is Brotherly Love, that virtue which
forms the most prominent tenet of the Masonic Order. And it teaches
the lesson, too, precisely as we do, by a symbol, comparing it to the
precious ointment used in the consecration of the High Priest, whose
delightful perfume filled the whole place with its odor. The
ointment was poured upon the head in such quantity, that, being
directed by the anointer in different ways in the form of a cross, it
flowed at length down the beard, and finally dropped from the flowing
skirts of the priestly garment.
The
fifteen Psalms, from the 120th to the 134th, inclusive, of which
this, of course, is one, are called by the Hebrews, “songs of
degrees,” because they were sung on the fifteen steps ascending
from the court of Israel to the court of the women in the Temple.
The
best commentators think that the 133rd Psalm is intended to represent
the exultation of the Priests and Levites returned from the captivity
at Babylon, and again united in the service of God in the sanctuary.
How appropriate, then, is its adoption in this degree to commemorate
the approaching release of a neophyte from the darkness in which he
had been long wandering, and his admission into a society whose
dwelling-place is intended as a representation of that glorious
Temple at whose portals the very hymn of rejoicing was formerly sung.
The candidate will not, of course, at the time, understand the
allusion, but there is a striking analogy between the liberated Jew
going up from the thralldom of Babylon to join once more with his
brethren in the true worship on “the threshing-floor of Oman
the Jebusite,” and the candidate for Masonry, coming out of the
blindness and darkness of the profane world, to search for light and
truth within the sacred precincts of the Lodge.
THE THREE GATES OF THE TEMPLE.
Dr.
Dalcho, in his “Orations,” has found great fault with the
York rite of Masonry, because it has in its ceremonies perpetrated
the error of furnishing the Temple of Solomon with three gates—one
at the south, one at the west, and one at the east—while in
truth there was but one gate to the Temple, and that was in the porch
at the east end. But the real error lies with Dr. Dalcho, who has
mistaken a symbolic allusion for a historical statement. It is not
pretended, that because Masonry has adopted the Temple of Jerusalem
as the groundwork or elementary form of all its symbols, a Lodge is
therefore ever expected, except in a symbolic sense, to be a
representative of the Temple. On the contrary, the very situation of
a Lodge is the exact reverse of that of the Temple. The entrance of
the former is at the west, that of the latter was at the east. The
most holy place in a Lodge is its eastern end, that of the Temple was
its western extremity.
The
fact is, that in Masonry, all allusions to the Temple of Solomon are
simply symbolic, and while the great symbol of a material temple,
prefiguring a spiritual one, is preserved, no care has ever been
taken to obtain correctness of architectural details, or even of
strictly historical facts.
The
circumambulation and the three supposed gates, referred to and
explained in this section of the lecture, are symbolical of the
progress of every man in his journey in search of Truth, the great
object of all Masonic labor, and of the embarrassments and
obstructions that he must meet with in that search. Hence our French
brethren call this circumambulation a voyage,
and each voyage is typical of some danger or trial of human
life.
THE OBLIGATION OF SECRECY.
The
duty of an Entered Apprentice is embraced by the virtues of silence
and secrecy. Speaking of the origin of those duties among
Masons in the primitive period of their origin, Brother Nicholson
[Lecture on the “Symbolism of Freemasonry,” p. 15.]
says: “As idolatry prevailed upon the earth
[immediately after the Deluge], it became necessary for those who
held to the worship of the true God to form themselves into a
distinct order—not only those who were of the children of
Israel, but also others, who retained the traditions of Israel's God,
though of Gentile blood. The time arrived when openly to worship the
true God was attended with danger;
and then it was that our brethren had special recourse
to hieroglyphics and symbols to preserve secrecy, lest they should be
exposed to the arm of persecution. But as, indeed, the arcana or
recondite points of religion were always in possession of the priests
alone, among the different idolatrous peoples; and as peculiar forms
of initiation were practiced by them, attended with the greatest
secrecy (not to say with positive danger to the candidates), the same
practice was resorted to by the votaries of the true God, at least so
far as secrecy was concerned—secrecy from that time forth
ranking as a virtue among Masons, and justly so. Again, to preserve
the privileges of the Order, strict secrecy was observed, lest those
privileges should become abused. Among the ancients, secrecy stood
high as a mark of wisdom.”
Calcott
also, on this subject says: “If we turn our eyes back to
antiquity, we shall find that the old Egyptians had so great a regard
for silence and secrecy in the mysteries of their
religion, that they set up the god Harpocrates, to whom they paid
particular honor and veneration, who was represented with his right
hand placed near the heart, and the left down by his side, covered
with a skin, before full of eyes and ears, to signify that, of many
things to be seen and heard, few are to be published.”
THE UNWRITTEN LANDMARKS.
The
instructions which constitute the hidden or esoteric knowledge in
Freemasonry are forbidden to be written, and can only be communicated
by oral intercourse of one Mason with another. This is another
instance of the great antiquity of the usages of Freemasonry, which
is presenting such collateral evidences of its venerable age.
In
all the ancient mysteries, the same reluctance to commit the esoteric
instructions of the hierophants to writing is apparent and hence the
secret knowledge taught in their initiations was preserved in
symbols, the true meaning of which was closely concealed from the
profane.
The
Druids had a similar regulation; and Caesar informs us that it was
not considered lawful to intrust their sacred verses to writing; but
these were always committed to memory by their disciples.
The
same custom prevailed among the Jews with respect to the Oral Law,
which was never intrusted to books; but, being preserved in the
memories of the priests and wise men, was handed down, from one to
the other, through a long succession of ages.
Maimonides
has described, according to the Rabbinical traditions, the mode
adopted by Moses to impress the principles of this Oral Law.
The
secret doctrine of the Cabala, or the mystical philosophy of the
Hebrews, was, also, communicated in an oral form, and, says Maurice,
“transmitted, verbally, down to all the great characters
celebrated in Jewish antiquity—among whom both David and
Solomon were deeply conversant in its most hidden mysteries. Nobody,
however, had ventured to commit anything of this kind to paper.”
The
Christian Church, in the age immediately succeeding the Apostolic,
observed the same custom of oral instruction. The early Fathers were
eminently cautious not to commit certain of the mysterious dogmas of
their religion to writing, lest the surrounding pagans should be made
acquainted with what they could neither understand nor appreciate.
St. Basil, treating of this subject, in the fourth century, says:
“We receive the dogmas transmitted to us by writing and those
which have descended to us from the Apostles, beneath the mystery of
oral tradition; for several things have been handed to us without
writing, lest the vulgar, too familiar with our dogmas, should lose a
due respect for them.”
A
custom so ancient as this, of keeping the landmarks unwritten, and
one so invariably observed by the Masonic fraternity, we may very
naturally presume, must have been originally established with the
wisest intentions; and as the usage was adopted by many other
institutions, whose organization was
similar to that of Freemasonry, we may also suppose that it
was connected with the character of an esoteric instruction.
The
following passage of Scripture is here used:
“In
the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. And the earth
was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the
deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters. And
God said, Let there be Light: and there was Light.” —
Genesis 1:1-3.
THE SHOCK OF ENLIGHTENMENT.
The
material light which sprung forth at the fiat of the Grand Architect,
when darkness and chaos were dispersed, has ever been, in Masonry, a
favorite symbol of that intellectual illumination which it is the
object of the Order to create in the minds of its disciples, whence
we have justly assumed the title of “Sons of Light.”
This mental illumination—this spiritual light, which, after his
new birth, is the first demand of the candidate, is but another name
for Divine Truth—the truth of God and the soul—the nature
and essence of both—which constitute the chief design of all
Masonic teaching. And as the chaos and confusion in which, “in
the beginning,” the earth, “without form, and void,”
was enwrapt were dispersed, and order and beauty established by the
Supreme command which created material light; so, at the proper
declaration, and in the due and recognized form, the intellectual
chaos and confusion in which the mind of the neophyte is involved are
dispersed, and the true knowledge of the science and philosophy, the
faith and doctrine of Masonry, are developed.
But
what mind can conceive, or what pen portray, that terrible convulsion
of nature, that awful disentanglement of its elements, which must
have accompanied the Divine command, “Let there be light!”
The attempt to describe it would be a presumptuous task. We feel,
when we meditate on the subject, that stillness and silence must have
fled before the Almighty Voice, and the earth itself have trembled in
its new existence, when the gloomy pall of darkness was rolled as a
curtain from the face of nature.
And
in Masonry, by the Shock of Enlightenment, we seek, humbly,
indeed, and at an inconceivable distance, to preserve the
recollection and to embody the idea of the birth of material light by
the representation of the circumstances that accompanied it, and
their reference to the birth of intellectual or Masonic light. The
one is the type of the other; and hence the illumination of the
candidate is attended with a ceremony that may be supposed to
imitate the primal illumination of the universe—most feebly, it
is true, and yet not altogether without impressiveness.
The
Shock of Enlightenment is, then, a symbol of the change which
is now taking place in the intellectual condition of the candidate.
It is the symbol of the birth of intellectual light and the
dispersion of intellectual darkness.
THE HOLY BIBLE.
The
Holy Bible is given to us as the rule and guide of our faith; the
Square, to square our actions; and the Compasses, to circumscribe our
desires and passions in due bounds with all mankind, but more
especially with brother Masons; and hence the Bible is the light
which enlightens the path of our duty to God; the Square, that which
enlightens the path of duty to our fellow-men; and the Compasses,
that which enlightens the path of our duty to ourselves.
The
lesser lights are intended to remind us of that symbolism which makes
the Lodge a type of the world; and hence the Master,
presiding and dispensing light, may well be compared to those
heavenly luminaries which were made, “the greater light to rule
the day, and the lesser light to rule the night;” and we are
thus reminded, that as the sun rules the day and the moon governs the
night, so should the W:. M:. rule and govern his Lodge with equal
regularity and precision.
Note.—Errors
are so often made in placing the lights around the altar, that the
preceding diagram is inserted for the direction of the Senior Deacon,
whose duty it is to see that they are properly distributed. The
stars represent the positions of the lights in the E., W., and S.,
and the black dot, the place of darkness in the N., where there is no
light. The dotted line passing through these points in the diagram
represents the limits of the Lodge, and above that the lights are in
the proper cardinal points.
When
being clothed as an Entered Apprentice, the candidate receives the
following charge:
I
present you with this lambskin or white leather apron,
which is an emblem of innocence and the badge of a Mason, more
ancient than the Golden Fleece or Roman Eagle; more honorable than
the Star and Garter, or any other order that could be conferred upon
you, at this or any other future period, by king, prince, or
potentate, or any other person, except he were a Mason and in the
body of a Lodge, and which, I trust, you will wear with equal
pleasure to yourself and honor to the fraternity.
[The
Order of the Golden Fleece was an order of knighthood instituted in
1429, by Philip, Duke of Burgundy. There is no such order as
the Knights of the Roman Eagle. The expression (which is an unhappy
one) probably refers to the fact that the Eagle was the standard of
the ancient Roman Empire. The Order of the Garter, the most noble of
the British orders of knighthood, was instituted in 1341, by Edward
III. The Star and the Garter an the insignia bestowed upon and worn
by a knight.]
THE LAMBSKIN APRON.
The
use of the apron, or some equivalent mode of investiture as a mystic
symbol, was common to all the religious systems of antiquity. Among
the Israelites, the girdle formed a part of the investiture of the
priesthood. In the Persian mysteries of Mithras the candidate was
invested with a white apron. In the Brahminical initiations of
Hindostan, the Zennaar, or sacred Lord, was substituted for the
apron. The Essenians clothed their novices with a white robe. Even
the Japanese, in their rites of initiation, invest their candidate
with a white apron.
The
color of a Mason's apron should be pure white,
because this color has in all ages and countries been deemed
an emblem of purity and innocence. Thus, in the early ages of the
Christian Church, the newly-baptized convert was invested with a
white robe, to denote that he had been cleansed from his former sins,
and was thenceforth to lead a life of purity. With a similar
meaning, the same undefiled color has been preserved in the apron of
the Freemason.
The
material of a Mason's apron must be lambskin. No other
substance, such as linen, silk, or satin, can be substituted, without
entirely destroying the symbolic character of the apron, because the
lamb has in all ages been deemed the appropriate emblem of innocence.
The
true Masonic apron should, then, be of unspotted lambskin, from 14 to
16 inches wide, and from 12 to 14 inches deep, with a fall about 3 or
4 inches deep, square at the bottom, with sharp angular corners, and
without device or ornament of any kind. The usage of the craft in
this country has, within a few years past, allowed a narrow edging of
blue ribbon, in allusion to that universal friendship which is the
bond of the Society, and of which virtue blue is the symbol. But
this, undoubtedly, is an innovation, for the ancient apron was
without any edging or ornament. All extraneous ornaments and devices
are in bad taste, and distract from the symbolic character of the
investiture. But the silk or satin aprons, bespangled, and painted,
and embroidered, which have been gradually creeping into our Lodges,
have no sort of connection with Ancient Craft Masonry. They are an
innovation of French origin, which should be persistently discouraged
by all who admire the simplicity and beauty of our symbols. A Mason
who duly and truly appreciates the symbolic meaning of his apron
would no more tolerate a linen one for its economy, or an embroidered
satin one for its decorations, than an artist would a gilded statue.
The lambskin, and the lambskin alone, is the badge “more
ancient than the Golden Fleece or Roman Eagle, and more honorable
than the Star and Garter.”
THE NORTHEAST CORNER.
In
the important ceremony which refers to the northeast corner of the
Lodge, the candidate becomes as one who is to all outward appearance
a perfect and upright man and Mason, the representative of a
spiritual corner-stone, on which he is to erect his future moral and
Masonic edifice.
This
symbolic reference of the corner-stone of a material edifice to a
Mason when, at his first initiation, he commences the moral and
intellectual task of erecting a spiritual temple in his heart, is
beautifully sustained when we look at all the qualities that are
required to constitute a “well-tried, true, and trusty”
corner-stone. The squareness of its surface, emblematic of
morality—its cubical form, emblematic of firmness and stability
of character—and the peculiar finish and fineness of the
material, emblematic of virtue and holiness—show that the
ceremony of the northeast corner of the Lodge was undoubtedly
intended to portray, in the consecrated language of symbolism, the
necessity of integrity and stability of conduct, of truthfulness and
uprightness of character, and of purity and holiness of life, which
just at that time and in that place the candidate is most
impressively charged to maintain.
THE WORKING TOOLS.
The
working tools of an Entered Apprentice are the Twenty-four-inch
Guage and the Common Gavel.
The
Twenty-four-inch Guage is an instrument used by operative
masons to measure and lay cut their work; but we, as Free and
Accepted Masons, are taught to make use of it for the more noble and
glorious purpose of dividing our time. It being divided into
twenty-four equal parts, is emblematica1 of the twenty-four hours of
the day, which we are taught to divide into three equal parts;
whereby are found eight hours for the service of God and a distressed
worthy brother; eight for our usual vocations; and eight for
refreshment and sleep.
The
Common Gavel is an instrument made use of by operative masons
to break off the corners of rough stones, the better to fit them for
the builder's use; but we, as Free and Accepted Masons, are taught to
make use of it for the more noble and glorious purpose of divesting
our hearts and consciences of all the vices and superfluities of
life; thereby fitting our minds as living stones for that spiritual
building, that house “not made with hands, eternal in the
heavens.”
This
presentation of the working tools of a stone-mason to the candidate
must necessarily attract his attention to the fact that there is a
connection between the operative art and the speculative science,
which connection simply consists in this, that speculative Masonry is
the application and sanctification of the working tools and
implements, the rules and principles of operative masonry, to the
veneration of God and the purification of the heart.
The
Operative Masons at Jerusalem, from whom we date our origin, were
occupied in the construction of an earthly and material temple, to be
dedicated to the service and worship of God—a house in which
the mighty Jehovah was to dwell visibly by his Shekinah, and whence
he was, by Urim and Thummin, to send forth his oracles for the
government and direction of his chosen people.
The
Speculative Mason is engaged in the construction of a spiritual
temple in his heart, pure and spotless, fit for the dwelling-place of
Him who is the author of purity; where God is to be worshiped in
spirit and in truth, and whence every evil thought and unruly passion
are to be banished, as the sinner and the Gentile were excluded from
the sanctuary of the Jewish Temple.
In
the symbolic language of Masonry, therefore, the twenty-four-inch
guage is a symbol of time well employed; the common gavel, of the
purification of the heart.
In
the Ancient Mysteries, the first step taken by the candidate was
a lustration or purification. The candidate was not permitted to
enter the sacred vestibule, or to take any part in the secret formula
of initiation, until by water or fire he was emblematically purified
from the corruptions of the world which he was about to leave behind.
A similar principle exists in Freemasonry where the first symbols
presented to the Entered Apprentice are those which inculcate a
purification of the heart, of which the purification of the body in
the Ancient Mysteries was symbolic.
We
no longer make use of the bath or the fountain, because in our
philosophical system the symbolism is more abstract; but we present
the candidate with the apron, the guage, and the gavel,
as symbols, of a spiritual purification. The design is the same,
but the mode in which it is accomplished is different.
ARCHIVES OF THE LODGE.
In
former times, before the general use of writing, men were accustomed
to avail themselves of any imperishable substance as a memorial of
some transaction, the record of which would now be committed to paper
or parchment. Hence we find in the primitive Christian Church, that
a fish-shaped die was used as a certificate of membership, and was so
recognized from town to town and from church to church. Especially
was a piece of metal or ivory made use of by the ancients as a token
of a pledge of amity. Being broken into two pieces, the host, when
he had entertained a stranger who was about to depart, gave the guest
one part while he retained the other; and these broken pieces served
in all times afterward as a memorial of the pledge of friendship that
had been thus inaugurated. It may be that the Masonic custom of
asking for the deposit of something of the kind in the Archives of
the Lodge as a memorial, may have reference to this custom. The
candidate is supposed to be thus giving his pledge of fidelity to the
Institution. But the subsequent part of the ceremony would teach him
that no material and tangible pledge is really wanted, but that the
true pledge of Masonic friendship is deposited in the heart. At a
future period, in the next section, an opportunity is taken to
exemplify the practical application of the pledge thus made, by an
impressive charge on the nature of charity.
SECOND SECTION.
The
second section of the first lecture, according to the system
prevailing in this country, is occupied with an explanation of the
symbolic meaning of the ceremonies that are detailed in the first;
without, therefore, a knowledge of the second section, the first
becomes barren and insignificant. It must, however, be confessed
that many of the interpretations given in this section are
unsatisfactory to the cultivated mind, and seem to have been adopted
on the principle of the old Egyptians, who made use of symbols to
conceal rather than to express their thoughts. Learned Masons have
been, therefore, always disposed to go beyond the mere technicalities
and stereotyped phrases of the lectures, and to look in the history
and the philosophy of the ancient religions, and the organization of
the ancient mysteries, for a true explanation of most of the symbols
of Masonry, and there they have always been enabled to find this true
interpretation. The usual lecture is, however, still preserved as a
brief mode of acquiring a general knowledge of the mode of Masonic
instruction, and as furnishing sufficient proof of the definition
that “Freemasonry is a system of morality vailed in allegory
and illustrated by symbols.”
[Webb,
Cross, and Hardie, and our other monitorial writers, have printed
very little of this section, although they have been exceedingly
liberal in their publication of the third section. I have not deemed
it expedient to go much beyond their degree of reticence, but I have
taken occasion, as being much more useful, to invite attention to the
coincidences existing between the ceremonies of Masonry and those of
the ancient systems of initiation. The allusions, where I have felt
constrained to be cautious in my language, will be well understood by
the Mason who has made himself acquainted with the authorized lecture
of the degree.]
PREPARATION.
There
is much analogy between the preparation of the candidate in Masonry
and the preparation for entering the Temple, as practiced among the
ancient Israelites. The Talmudical treatise entitled “Beracoth”
prescribes the regulation in these words: “No man shall enter
into the Lord's house with his staff [an offensive weapon], nor with
his outer garment, nor with shoes on his feet, nor with money in his
purse.”
Various
passages of Scripture are referred to in this section as elucidating
the traditions of Masonry on the subject of the Temple.
“And
we will cut wood out of Lebanon, as much as thou shalt need; and we
will bring it to thee in floats by sea to Joppa; and thou shalt carry
it up to Jerusalem.” — 2 Chronicles 2:16.
“And
the house, when it was in building, was built of stone made ready
before it was brought thither: so that there was neither hammer, nor
axe, nor any tool of iron heard in the house, while it was in
building.” — 1 Kings 6:7.
Josephus
says: “The whole structure of the Temple was made with great
skill, of polished stones, and those laid together so very
harmoniously and smoothly, that there appeared to the spectators no
sign of any hammer or other instrument of architecture, but as if,
without any use of them, the entire materials had naturally united
themselves together, so that the agreement of one part with another
seemed rather to have been natural, than to have arisen from the
force of tools upon them.” [Josephus, Flavius. The
Antiquities of the Jews. b. VIII, ch. III, sec. 2, p. 177.]
“Now
this was the manner in former time in Israel concerning redeeming and
concerning changing, for to confirm all things; a man plucked off his
shoe, and gave it to his neighbor: and this was a testimony in
Israel.” — Ruth 4:7.
In
the Ancient Mysteries the aspirant was always kept for a certain
period in a condition of darkness. Hence darkness became the symbol
of initiation. Applied to Masonic symbolism, it is intended to
remind the candidate of his ignorance, which Masonry is to enlighten;
of his evil nature, which Masonry is to purify; of the world, in
whose obscurity he has been wandering, and from which Masonry is to
rescue him.
“Ask,
and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it
shall be opened unto you.” — Matthew 7:7.
In
the ancient initiations the candidate was never permitted to enter on
the threshold of the temple or sacred cavern in which the ceremonies
were to be conducted, until by the most solemn warning he had been
impressed with the necessity of caution, secrecy, and fortitude.
PRAYER.
As
Masons, we are taught never to commence any great or important
undertaking without first invoking the blessing and protection of
Deity, and this is because Masonry is a religious institution, and we
thereby show our dependence on and out trust in God.
A BELIEF IN GOD.
This
constitutes the sole creed of a Mason—at least, the only creed
that he is required to profess. But such a profession is essentially
and absolutely necessary, because, without a belief in a
superintending Power, with the inevitable deduction from the purity
and holiness of such a Being, that sin will be punished and virtue
rewarded, there would be no sanction to a moral law, for the atheist
would have no motive to keep a promise or to preserve an obligation.
THE LEFT SIDE.
The
left side has always, apparently for a well-known physical
reason, been deemed inferior to the right. The right side is the
side of honor. “To sit on the right side of the king”
was a mark of great favor. And the ancients were so impressed with
this fact, that among them the words for left and unlucky
were synonymous, as were also those for right and
fortunate. The same peculiarity exists in our own language,
where sinister means both left and inauspicious.
THE RIGHT HAND.
The
right hand has in all ages been deemed an emblem of
fidelity, and our ancient brethren worshiped Deity under the name of
Fides or Fidelity, which was sometimes represented by two right hands
joined, and sometimes by two human figures, holding each other by the
right hands.
Numa
was the first who erected an altar to Fides, under which name the
goddess of oaths and honesty was worshiped. Obligations taken in
her name were considered as more
inviolable than any others. [Montfaucon mentions several medals in
which Fides was represented by two hands joined together, which, he
says, “was the most usual symbol.”]
THE BADGE OF A MASON.
The
lamb has in all ages been deemed an emblem of innocence; by the
lambskin, the Mason is therefore reminded of that purity of life and
conduct which is so essentially necessary to his gaining admission
into the celestial Lodge above, where the Supreme Architect of the
Universe presides.
THE FIRST INSTRUCTIONS.
The
candidate receives those first instructions whereon to erect his
future moral and Masonic edifice in a particular part of the Lodge,
because as on the night of his initiation he commences the great
task, which is never in his future Masonic life to be discontinued,
of erecting in his heart a spiritual temple for the indwelling of
God, of which the great material Temple at Jerusalem was but the
symbol; and as each new duty which he learns, and each new virtue
that he practices, becomes a living stone in that temple, it is
proper that, respecting the whole system of symbolism, he should
begin the labor of erecting a spiritual temple just as the operative
mason would commence the construction of his material temple, by
first laying the cornerstone on which the future edifice is to arise.
His first instructions constitute that corner-stone, and on it, when
laid in its proper place, he constructs the moral and Masonic temple
of his life.
THE LESSON OF CHARITY.
Although
Freemasonry is indebted for its origin to its religious and
philosophic character, yet charity, in the ordinary adaptation of
relief of the distressed, becomes, although incidentally, a prominent
feature in its teachings. And hence it has been well said, that
there is no institution whose laws more strongly enforce, or whose
precepts more earnestly inculcate, the virtue of charity. In
allusion to the ceremony now under consideration, Tannehill remarks
that “it is among the first lessons we are taught, when we pass
the threshold of the mystic temple.”
THIRD SECTION.
The
third section of the Entered Apprentice's lecture explains the nature
and principles of our constitution, and furnishes many interesting
details relating to the Form, Supports, Covering, Furniture,
Ornaments, Lights, and Jewels of a Lodge, how it should be situated,
and to whom dedicated.
Nearly
the whole of this section has been made monitorial. Webb, and after
him Cross, Hardie Tannehill, and all other monitorial writers, have
left but little of it unpublished. I have, on the same principle,
slightly increased the amount of information given, by the
publication of one or two passages, hitherto excepted from
publication in other monitors, since I could discover no reason why
this exception should have been made.
A
Lodge is an assemblage of Masons duly congregated, having the Holy
Bible, Square, and Compasses, and a Charter or Warrant of
Constitution authorizing them to work.
Every
lawful assemblage of Masons, duly congregated for work, will be “a
just and legally constituted Lodge.” It is just, that
is, regular and orderly, when it contains the requisite
number to form a quorum, and when the Bible, Square, and Compasses
are present. It is legally constituted when it is acting
under the authority of a Warrant of Constitution, which is an
instrument written and printed on parchment or paper (but properly it
should be on the former), emanating from the Grand Lodge in whose
jurisdiction the Lodge is situated, and signed by the grand officers,
which authorizes the persons therein named, and their successors, to
meet as Masons and perform Masonic labor. As no assemblage of Masons
is legal without such an instrument, it is not only the privilege,
but the duty, of every Mason on his first visit to a strange Lodge,
to demand a sight of its Warrant of Constitution; nor should any
brother sit in a Lodge whose members are unwilling to exhibit the
authority on which they act.
Our
ancient brethren met on the highest hills and in the lowest valleys,
the better to observe the approach of cowans and eavesdroppers, and
to guard against surprise.
The
reason assigned in the lecture for this assembling on high places, is
the modern, but not the true one. The fact is, that mountains and
other high places were almost always considered as holy, and
peculiarly appropriate for religious purposes, and we have abundant
evidence in Scripture that the Jews were accustomed to worship on the
tops of the highest hills, as it was believed that sacrifices offered
from these elevated places were most acceptable to the Deity.
Hutchinson says that “the highest hills and the lowest valleys
were, from the earliest times, esteemed sacred, and it was supposed
that the Spirit of God was peculiarly diffusive in those places.”
SYMBOLIC EXTENT OF THE LODGE.
A
Lodge is said, symbolically, to extend in length from east to west;
in breadth, from north to south; in height, from the earth to the
highest heavens; in depth, from the surface to the center. And a
Lodge is said to be of these vast dimensions to denote the
universality of Masonry, and to teach us that a Mason's charity
should be equally as extensive.
There
is a peculiar fitness in this theory, which is really only making the
Masonic Lodge a symbol of the world. It must be remembered that, at
the era of the Temple, the earth was supposed to have the form of a
parallelogram, or “oblong square.” Such a figure
inscribed upon a map of the world, and including only that part of it
which was known in the days of Solomon, would present just such a
square, embracing the Mediterranean Sea and the countries lying
immediately on its northern, southern, and eastern borders. Beyond,
far in the north, would be the Cimmerian deserts as a place of
darkness, while the pillars of Hercules in the west, on each side of
the Straits of Gades— now Gibraltar—might appropriately
be referred to the two pillars that stood at the porch of the Temple.
Thus the world itself would be the true Mason's Lodge, in which he
was to live and labor. Again; the solid contents of the earth below,
“from the surface to the center,” and the profound
expanse above, “from the earth to the highest heavens,”
would give to this parallelogram the outlines of a double cube, and
meet thereby that definition which says, that “the form of the
Lodge ought to be a double cube, as an expressive emblem of the
powers of light and darkness in the creation.” [Oliver, George.
Historical Landmarks of Freemasonry, vol. I. p. 135, n. 37.]
A
Lodge has three principal supports, which are Wisdom, Strength,
and Beauty, because it is necessary that there should he
wisdom to contrive, strength to support, and beauty to adorn all
great and important undertakings. Of these, the column of Wisdom is
situated in the east part of the
Lodge, and is represented by the W:. M:. because it is presumed that
he has wisdom to devise labor for the craft, and to superintend them
during the hours thereof; the column of Strength is situated in the
west part of the Lodge, and is represented by the S:. W:. because it
is his duty to strengthen and support the authority of the Master;
and the column of Beauty is situated in the south part of the Lodge,
and is represented by the J:. W:. because from his position in the
S:. he is the first to observe the meridian sun, which is the beauty
and glory of the day, to call the craft from labor to refreshment, to
superintend them during the hours thereof, to see that none convert
the purposes of refreshment
into those of intemperance or excess, and to call them on again in
due season, that the M:. W:. may have honor, and they pleasure and
profit thereby.
The
idea that the Lodge is a symbol of the world, is still carried out.
It was the belief of the ancients that the heavens, or the roof of
the world, was supported by pillars. By these pillars, some suppose
that the mountains are alluded; but in reference to a passage in Job
26:11, where it is said, “The pillars of heaven tremble,”
Noyes thinks that “it is more probable that heaven is
represented as an immense edifice, supported on lofty columns, like a
temple.” But on this passage Dr. Cutbush is still more
explicit. He says: “The arch, in this instance, is
allegorical not only of the arch of heaven, but of the higher degree
of Masonry, commonly called the Holy Royal Arch. The pillars which
support the arch are emblematical of wisdom and strength—the
former denoting the wisdom of the Supreme Architect, and the latter
the stability of the universe.” [Brewster, David. Edinburgh
Encyclopaedia, vol. II. p. 301, see Arch Celestial.]
MYSTICAL LADDER.
Its
covering is no less than a clouded canopy or starry decked heaven,
where all good Masons hope at last to arrive, by the aid of that
theological ladder which Jacob, in his vision saw ascending from
earth to heaven, the three principal rounds of which are denominated
Faith, Hope, and Charity, and which admonish us to have
faith in God, hope of immortality, and charity to all mankind.
The
greatest of these is Charity; for our Faith may be lost in sight;
Hope ends in fruition; but Charity extends beyond the grave, through
the boundless realms of eternity.
The
Lodge continues throughout this degree to be presented to the
initiate as a symbol of the world, and hence its covering is
figuratively supposed to be the “clouded canopy” on which
the host of stars is represented. If the Lodge represent the world,
then its covering must be represented by the blue vault of heaven.
The
mystical ladder which is here referred to, is a symbol that was
widely diffused among the religions of antiquity, where, as in
Masonry, it was always supposed to consist of seven steps, because
seven was a sacred number. In some of the Ancient Mysteries, the
seven steps represented the seven planets, and then the sun
was the topmost; in others they represented the seven metals,
and then gold was the topmost; in
the Brahminical mysteries they represented the seven worlds which
constituted the Indian universe, and then the world of Truth
was the highest. The seven steps of the Masonic ladder are
Temperance, Fortitude, Prudence, Justice,
Faith, Hope, and Charity; that
is, the four cardinal and the three theological virtues. Now, as
charity is love, and as the sun represents Divine Love, and as also
the astronomical sign of the sun is gold, and as truth is the synonym
of God, it is evident, that the topmost round in all these ladders,
whether it be the sun, or gold, or truth, or charity, conveys exactly
the same lesson of symbolism, namely, that the Mason, living and
working in the world as his Lodge, must seek to raise himself out of
it to that eminence which surmounts it, where alone he can find
Divine Truth.
FURNITURE AND ORNAMENTS OF A LODGE.
The
furniture of a Lodge consists of a Holy Bible, Square, and Compasses.
The
Holy Bible is dedicated to God; the Square, to the Master; and the
Compasses, to the craft.
The
Bible is dedicated to God, because it is the inestimable gift of God
to man; the Square, to the Master, because it is the proper Masonic
emblem of his office; and the Compasses, to the craft, because, by a
due attention to their use, they are taught to circumscribe their
desires, and keep their passions within due bounds.
The
ornaments of a Lodge are the Mosaic Pavement, the Indented
Tessel, and the Blazing Star. The Mosaic pavement is a
representation of the ground floor of King Solomon's Temple; and the
indented tessel, of that beautiful tesselated border or skirting
which surrounded it.
The
Mosaic pavement is emblematical of human life, checkered with good
and evil; the beautiful border which surrounds it is emblematical of
those manifold blessings and comforts which surround us, and which we
hope to obtain by a faithful reliance on Divine Providence, which is
hieroglyphically represented by the blazing star in the center.
Mosaic
Pavements, consisting of stones of various colors, so disposed as
to represent different shapes or forms, were common in the temples of
the ancients. Fellows says that they represented the variegated face
of the earth in the places where the ancients formerly held their
religious assemblies. The true derivation of the word is unknown, or
at least unsettled.
The
Indented Tessel is a border of stones, of various colors,
placed around the pavement. Tessel, from the Latin tessela,
means a little square stone, and to indent is to cut or
notch a margin into inequalities resembling teeth. A tesselated
border is, therefore, a notched border of variegated colors.
The
Blazing Star is said by Webb to be “commemorative of the
star which appeared to guide the wise men of the East to the place of
our Savior's nativity.” This, which is one of the ancient
interpretations of the symbol, being considered as too sectarian in
its character, and unsuitable to the universal religion of
Masonry, has been omitted since the meeting of Grand Lecturers at
Baltimore, in 1842.
THREE SYMBOLIC LIGHTS.
A
Lodge has three symbolic lights; one of these is in the East, one in
the West, and one in the South. There is no light in the north,
because King Solomon's Temple, of which every Lodge is a
representation, was placed so far north of the ecliptic, that the sun
and moon, at their meridian height, could dart no rays into the
northern part thereof. The north we therefore masonically call a
place of darkness.
The
three lights, like the three principal officers and the three
principal supports, refer undoubtedly to the three stations of the
sun—its rising in the east, its meridian in the south, and its
setting in the west—and thus the symbolism of the Lodge, as
typical of the world, continues to be preserved.
The
use of lights in all religious ceremonies is an ancient custom.
There was a seven-branched candlestick in the tabernacle, and in the
Temple “were the golden candlesticks, five on the right hand
and and five on the left.” They were always typical of moral
spiritual, or intellectual light.
MOVABLE AND IMMOVABLE JEWELS.
A
Lodge has six jewels; three of these are immovable and three movable.
The
immovable jewels are the Square, Level, and Plumb.
The
square inculcates morality; the level, equality; and the plumb,
rectitude of conduct.
They
are called immovable jewels, because they are always to be found in
the East, West, and South parts of the Lodge, being worn by the
officers in those respective stations.
The
movable jewels are the Rough Ashlar, the Perfect Ashlar,
and the Trestle-Board. [Such is the division of the jewels
in the Lodges of this country;
but in English Lodges the reverse is the case; there the rough and
perfect ashlars and the trestle-board are the immovable jewels, and
the square, level, and plumb are the movable, because they descend
from one set of officers to their successors.]
The
rough ashlar is a stone as taken from the quarry in its rude and
natural state.
The
perfect ashlar is a stone made ready by the hands of the workmen, to
be adjusted by the working tools of the fellow-craft. The
trestle-board is for the master workman to draw his designs upon.
By
the rough ashlar we are reminded of our rude and imperfect state by
nature; by the perfect ashlar, that state of perfection at which we
hope to arrive by a virtuous education, our own endeavors, and the
blessing of God; and by the trestle-board we are also reminded that,
as the operative workman erects his temporal building agreeably to
the rules and designs laid down by the master on his trestle-board,
so should we, both operative and speculative, endeavor to erect our
spiritual building agreeably to the rules and designs laid down by
the Supreme Architect of the Universe, in the great books of nature
and revelation, which are our spiritual, moral, and masonic
trestle-board.
To
every Mason, whatever may be his peculiar religious creed, that
revelation of the Deity which is recognized by his religion becomes
his trestle-board. Thus, the trestle-board of the Jewish Mason is
the Old Testament; of the Christian, the Old and the New; of the
Mohammedan, the Koran. But as no operative mason can work without a
trestle-board, where the designs and instructions of his master for
his conduct in the building on which he is engaged may be delineated,
so no speculative mason can labor truly and profitably in the great
work of life without a trestle-board which may contain the
delineation of the designs and will of his Eternal Master. And thus
it is that, as the atheist acknowledges no such Master, and can
therefore have no such trestle-board, he is not permitted to unite
with us in our “moral, spiritual, and masonic” labor.
And this is really the reason of the law which forbids the initiation
of atheists.
THE TABERNACLE.
A
Lodge is situated due east and west, because when Moses crossed the
Red Sea, being pursued by Pharaoh and his host, he erected on the
other side, by divine command, a tabernacle, which he placed due east
and west, to receive the first rays of the rising sun, and to
commemorate that mighty east wind by which their miraculous
deliverance was effected. This tabernacle was an exact pattern of
King Solomon's Temple, of which every Lodge is a representation, and
it is, or ought, therefore, to be placed due east and west.
[Dr.
Oliver assigns the following reasons why the tabernacle is considered
as the type of a Mason's Lodge; “It was an oblong square, and,
with its courts and appendages, it represented the whole habitable
globe. Such is also the extent of our Lodges. The former was
supported by pillars, and the latter is also sustained by those of
Wisdom, Strength, and Beauty. They were equally situated due east
and west. The sacred roll of God's revealed will and law was
deposited in the Ark of the Covenant; the same holy record is placed
in a conspicuous part of our Lodges. The altar of incense was a
double cube, and so is our pedestal and stone of foundation. The
covering of the tabernacle was composed of three colors, as a
representation of the celestial hemisphere; such, also, is the
covering of a Mason's Lodge. The floor of the tabernacle was so
holy, that the priests were forbidden to tread upon it without taking
off their shoes; the floor of the Lodge is holy ground.” —
Oliver, George. Dictionary of Symbolic Masonry. p. 254.
see Oblong.]
ORIENTATION OF LODGES.
The
orientation of Lodges, or their position due east and west, is
derived from the universal custom of antiquity. “The heathen
temples,” says Dudley, “were so constructed that their
length was directed toward the east, and the entrance was by a
portico at the western front, where the altar stood, so that the
votaries approaching for the performance of religious rites, directed
their faces toward the east, the quarter of sunrise.” The
primitive reason of this custom undoubtedly is to be found in the
early prevalence of sun-worship, and hence the spot where that
luminary first made his appearance in the heavens was consecrated, in
the minds of his worshipers, as a place entitled to peculiar
reverence. Long after the reason had ceased, the custom continued to
be observed, and Christian churches still are built, when
circumstances will permit, with particular reference to an
east-and-west position. Freemasonry, retaining in its symbolism the
typical reference of the Lodge to the world, and constantly alluding
to the sun in his apparent diurnal revolution, imperatively requires,
when it can be done, that the Lodge should be situated due east and
west, so that every ceremony shall remind the Mason of the progress
of that luminary.
Our
ancient brethren dedicated their Lodges to King Solomon, because he
was our first Most Excellent Grand Master; but modern Masons dedicate
theirs to St. John the Baptist and St. John the Evangelist, who were
two eminent patrons of Masonry; and since their time, there is
represented, in every regular and well-governed Lodge, a certain
point within a circle, embordered by two perpendicular parallel
lines, representing St. John the Baptist and St. John the Evangelist;
and upon the top rests the Holy Scriptures. The point represents an
individual brother; the circle is the boundary line, beyond which he
is never to suffer his prejudices or passions to betray him. In
going round this circle, we necessarily
touch upon these two lines, as well as the Holy Scriptures; and while
a Mason keeps himself circumscribed within these due bounds, it is
impossible that he should materially err.
POINT WITHIN A CIRCLE.
The
point within a circle is an interesting and important symbol
in Freemasonry, but it has been so debased in the interpretation of
it given in the modern lectures, that the sooner that interpretation
is forgotten by the Masonic student, the better will it be. The
symbol is really a beautiful but somewhat abstruse allusion to the
old sun-worship, and introduces us for the first time to that
modification of it known among the ancients as the worship of the
Phallus.
The
Phallus was an imitation of the male generative organ. It was
represented usually by a column, which was surrounded by a circle at
its base, intended for the eteis, or female generative
organ. This union of the phallus and the eteis, which is well
represented by the point within the circle, was intended by
the ancients as a type of the prolific powers of nature, which they
worshiped under the united form of the active or male principle, and
the passive or female principle. Impressed with this idea of the
union of these two principles, they made the older of their deities
hermaphrodite, and supposed Jupiter, or the Supreme God, to have
within himself both sexes, or, as one of their poets expresses it,
“to have been created a male and an unpolluted virgin.”
Now,
this hermaphrodism of the Supreme Divinity was again supposed to be
represented by the sun, which was the male generative energy, and by
nature or the universe, which was the female prolific principle. And
this union was symbolized in different ways, but principally by the
point within the circle, the point indicating the sun, and the
circle the universe of nature, warmed into life by his prolific rays.
The
two parallel lines, which in the modern lectures are said to
represent St. John the Baptist and St. John the Evangelist, really
allude to particular periods in the sun's annual course. At two
particular points in this course the sun is found on the zodaical
signs Cancer and Capricorn, which are distinguished as the summer and
winter solstice. When the sun is in these points, he has reached
respectively his greatest northern and southern limit. These points,
if we suppose the circle to represent the sun's annual course, will
be indicated by the points where the parallel lines touch the circle.
But the days when the sun reaches these points are the 21st of June
and the 22nd of December, and this will account for their subsequent
application to the two Saints John, whose anniversaries the Church
has placed near those days.
So
the true interpretation of the point within the circle is the same as
that of the Master and Wardens of a Lodge. The reference to the
symbolism of the world and the Lodge is preserved in both. The
Master and Wardens are symbols of the sun—the Lodge, of the
universe or the world; the point also is the symbol of the same sun,
and the surrounding circle of the universe, while the two parallel
lines really point, not to two saints, but to the two northern and
southern limits of the sun's course.
THREE GREAT TENETS.
The
three great tenets of a Mason's profession are Brotherly Love,
Relief, and Truth, which are thus described:
BROTHERLY LOVE.
By
the exercise of brotherly love, we are taught to regard the whole
human species as one family; the high and low, the rich and poor;
who, as created by one Almighty Parent, and inhabitants of the same
planet, are to aid, support, and protect each other. On this
principle, Masonry unites men of every country, sect, and opinion,
and conciliates true friendship among those who might otherwise have
remained at a perpetual distance.
RELIEF.
To
relieve the distressed, is a duty incumbent on all men, but
particularly on Masons, who are linked together by an indissoluble
chain of sincere affection. To soothe the unhappy, to sympathize
with their misfortunes, to compassionate their miseries, and to
restore peace to their troubled minds, is the great aim we have in
view. On this basis we form our friendships and establish our
connections.
TRUTH.
Truth
is a divine attribute, and the foundation of every virtue. To be
good and true, is the first lesson we are taught in Masonry. On this
theme we contemplate, and by its dictates endeavor to regulate our
conduct; hence, while influenced by this principle, hypocrisy and
deceit are unknown among us, sincerity and plain-dealing distinguish
us, and the heart and tongue join in promoting each other's welfare,
and rejoicing in each other's prosperity.
FOUR CARDINAL VIRTUES.
The
four cardinal virtues are Temperance, Fortitude,
Prudence, and Justice, and are thus explained:
TEMPERANCE.
Temperance
is that due restraint upon our affections and passions which renders
the body tame and governable, and frees the mind from the allurements
of vice. This virtue should be the constant practice of every Mason;
as he is thereby taught to avoid excess, or contracting any
licentious or vicious habit, the indulgence of which might lead him
to disclose some of those valuable secrets which he has promised to
conceal and never reveal, and which would consequently subject him to
the contempt and detestation of all good Masons.
FORTITUDE.
Fortitude
is that noble and steady purpose of the mind whereby we are enabled
to undergo any pain, peril, or danger, when prudentially deemed
expedient. This virtue is equally distant from rashness and
cowardice; and, like the former, should be deeply impressed upon the
mind of every Mason, as a safeguard or security against any illegal
attack that may be made, by force or otherwise, to extort from him
any of those valuable secrets with which he has been so solemnly
intrusted, and which were emblematically represented upon his first
admission into the Lodge.
PRUDENCE.
Prudence
teaches us to regulate our lives and actions agreeably to the
dictates of reason, and is that habit by which we wisely judge and
prudentially determine on all things relative to our present as well
as to our future happiness. This virtue should be the peculiar
characteristic of every Mason, not only for the government of
his conduct while in the Lodge, but also when abroad in the world.
It should be particularly attended to in all strange and mixed
companies, never to let fall the least sign, token, or word whereby
the secrets of Masonry might be unlawfully obtained.
JUSTICE.
Justice
is that standard, or boundary of right, which enables us to render to
every man his just due, without distinction. This virtue is not only
consistent with Divine and human laws, but is the very cement and
support of civil society; and as justice in a great measure
constitutes the real good man, so should it be the invariable
practice of every Mason never to deviate from the minutest principles
thereof.
As
an encouragement and example to the candidate, he is reminded that
our ancient brethren served their masters with freedom,
fervency, and zeal—which qualities are symbolically
illustrated—and the lecture closes with an appropriate
reflection on the certainty of death.
CHARGE AT THE INITIATION OF AN ENTERED APPRENTICE.
Brother:
As you are now introduced into the first principles of Masonry, I
congratulate you on being accepted into this ancient and honorable
Order: ancient, as having subsisted from time immemorial; and
honorable, as tending, in every particular, so to render all men who
will be conformable to its precepts. No institution was ever raised
on a better principle or more solid foundation; nor were ever more
excellent rules and useful maxims laid down than are inculcated in
the several Masonic lectures. The greatest and best of men, in all
ages, have been encouragers and promoters of the art, and have never
deemed it derogatory to their dignity to level themselves with the
fraternity, extend their privileges, and patronize their assemblies.
There are three great duties which, as a Mason, you are charged to
inculcate—to God, your neighbor, and yourself. To God, in
never mentioning his name but with that reverential awe which is due
from a creature to his Creator; to implore his aid in all your
laudable undertakings, and to esteem him as the chief good. To your
neighbor, in acting upon the square, and doing unto him as you wish
he should do unto you. And to yourself, in avoiding all irregularity
and intemperance, which may impair your faculties, or debase the
dignity of your profession. A zealous attachment to these duties
will insure public and private esteem.
In
the State, you are to be a quiet and peaceful subject, true to your
government, and just to your country; you are not to countenance
disloyalty or rebellion, but patiently submit to legal authority, and
conform with cheerfulness to the government of the country in which
you live. In your outward demeanor, be particularly careful to avoid
censure or reproach.
Although
your frequent appearance at our regular meetings is earnestly
solicited, yet it is not meant that Masonry should interfere with
your necessary vocations, for these are on no account to be
neglected; neither are you to suffer your zeal for the Institution to
lead you into argument with those who, through ignorance, may
ridicule it.
At
your leisure hours, that you may improve in Masonic knowledge, you
are to converse with well informed brethren, who will be always as
ready to give, as you will be ready to receive, instruction.
Finally,
keep sacred and inviolable the mysteries of the Order, as these are
to distinguish you from the rest of the community, and mark your
consequence among Masons. If, in the circle of your acquaintance,
you find a person desirous of being initiated into Masonry, be
particularly attentive not to recommend him unless you are convinced
he will conform to our rules; that the honor, glory, and reputation
of the Institution may be firmly established, and the world at large
convinced of its good effects.
[This
to a very old charge. The substance of it was written in 1774 by
Hutchinson, and published in his “Spirit of Masonry.”
Preston considerably enlarged and improved it subsequently, and
inserted it in his “Illustrations.” Webb afterward
reduced it to its present abridged form, simply by omitting many of
Preston's paragraphs.]